Liam: ?!?
Liam was utterly stunned.
What the hell did this guy just say?!
It took a moment for Liam to process what Liu Peng had just blurted out. Wasn't calling yourself someone's dog a direct insult to your own dignity? This guy's mind had to be seriously messed up.
Immediately, Liam yanked his hand away, refusing to let Liu Peng continue holding it.
"Hey, don't be so disgusting. Where did you get this weird fetish? Are you sick? Don't touch me!" Liam snapped, his voice laced with genuine disgust.
Liu Peng, still dazed from being shoved away, quickly tried to explain, "I'm serious, I really appreciate what you did. I won't suck up to that woman anymore—I'm only loyal to you now, big bro!"
Liam, watching Liu Peng's sudden shift in attitude, was at a loss for words. He had never imagined Liu Peng was capable of such drastic behavior. He spoke with clear disdain, "Get a grip. Watch what you say—enough with the 'suck up' talk. It's grossing me out."
"If you really want to show your appreciation, how about you kneel and bow right now?"
"No problem!" Liu Peng didn't even hesitate; he immediately started to drop to his knees. But Liam, in exasperation, quickly used his energy chains to yank him back up.
Liam: ...
This is ridiculous.
Watching Liu Peng's masochistic behavior, Liam was truly at a loss for words. The guy's demeanor had never hinted at this level of desperation.
How could someone have such a low threshold for self-respect?
Liam sighed and said, "Honestly, you should just act normal. I actually preferred you when you were a bit more rebellious."
Without waiting for a response, Liam quickly walked away, leaving Liu Peng behind.
Liu Peng, lost in thought, began pondering what exactly "rebellious" looked like...
Sophia approached Liam, a small smile on her lips as she asked, "So, how does it feel to be so popular?"
Liam rolled his eyes at the beautiful woman beside him. "You call this popularity? Would you enjoy this kind of attention?"
He gestured toward Liu Peng, who was now awkwardly practicing facial expressions, trying to emulate a "rebellious" look.
Sophia chuckled softly behind her hand. "Fanatics are like that."
As the two exchanged casual conversation, the hall doors swung open, and someone walked in with a swagger.
Zhong Jing had returned, looking refreshed after his break. His gaze swept the room and quickly landed on Liam and Sophia standing together.
"Everyone seems pretty happy. What's going on? Usually, after a test, everyone looks exhausted," he called out, striding over to Liam.
"You're out already? So, what rank did you get? By the way, thanks to you, your Ice God of War here lost a bet to me."
Liam stared at the unfamiliar middle-aged man approaching him, completely bewildered. Who is this guy? He didn't recognize him at all.
"Uh, who are you? And who's this 'Ice God of War'? Also, what do you mean 'mine'?" Liam asked, thoroughly confused.
"Oh, you didn't know?" Zhong Jing pointed at Sophia. "She's the new God of War of the War God Hall, the eighth one—Ice God of War."
Liam instinctively stepped back, his eyes widening as he looked Sophia up and down.
"You...?"
The beautiful female examiner he had met on the first day was actually a God of War?!
Sophia coughed lightly, a slight blush creeping onto her cheeks as she glanced at Zhong Jing. "You're embarrassing me..."
We haven't even reached that point, and you're already saying things like 'your Ice God of War'?
"Anyway, you've got it wrong. You lost our bet. He really did get first place," Sophia explained, recounting the events to Zhong Jing.
As Zhong Jing's expression gradually turned from shock to disbelief, a subtle sense of pride welled up within Sophia.
Zhong Jing stood there for a couple of seconds, dumbfounded, before turning on his heel and heading straight toward Cain, ignoring Sophia's mention of the bet entirely.
"God of War? What did you bet on?" Liam asked, still processing the new information.
Before Sophia could answer, Cain's voice echoed through the hall, interrupting the conversation. It seemed he wanted to avoid getting bogged down in trivial matters and was ready to move on to the next phase.
"Alright, everyone, you can save your celebrations for later. It's time to move on to the next part," Cain announced.
The students, still buzzing with excitement, gradually quieted down, their eyes turning toward Cain as they waited for him to continue.
"I know that Liam's performance in this test exceeded all of your expectations. It certainly surpassed ours," Cain began. "But do you want to know why you weren't able to match him? Why even when you all banded together, you still couldn't defeat him?"
He let the question hang in the air, his gaze sweeping over the gathered students.
But no one spoke. The answer seemed obvious—Liam was just that strong, with extraordinary talent.
"I know many of you might think it's simply because his talent is higher, that his abilities are more developed," Cain continued. "And those things are true, but there's another crucial reason that you've overlooked."
"He possesses something far more valuable—experience."
"He has more combat experience than any of you. He knows how to fight for his life better than any of you."
"The world of superhumans is a brutal one. There are many things the authorities have kept hidden from the public, but from today onward, you will begin to learn some of the harsh and painful truths."
"I hope you're ready. To get you started, we're going to show you a short video."
With a wave of his hand, a screen materialized before the students, and the image flickered to life.
The video showed Liam walking under dim streetlights, his eyes closed as he navigated through the darkness.
Liam: !!!
He immediately recognized the footage. It was from when he had tracked down those human traffickers, who were actually god-servants.
He knew Sophia had reported the incident, but he hadn't expected Cain to reveal it publicly like this. And where had they even gotten this footage? He didn't remember any cameras being there.
The students watched the video, initially confused as they saw Liam moving with his eyes shut, yet maneuvering effortlessly through the environment. They watched as he arrived at an outdoor gym, lightly tapping on the equipment to produce various sounds. Then, suddenly, the scene shifted—space seemed to warp as he stepped into another world.
At first, they whispered among themselves, marveling at Liam's strange actions. But soon, the whispers ceased. The hall grew deathly silent.
Those standing closest to Liam began to inch away, not daring to stand too near.
Because what followed on the screen was a scene of blood and brutality beyond anything they could have imagined.
The video continued to play, showing the students the brutal battle Liam had fought five days ago. They watched in horror as the sinister ritual unfolded and saw the two helpless, agonized children lying on the ground. Their youthful righteousness ignited a spark of anger within them, but that anger quickly turned to fear.
They witnessed Liam deftly dodging attacks and rescuing the children. They saw him ruthlessly smashing an enemy's chest with an icy rod, piercing through his body and tossing him aside. They watched as he fought against fanatical opponents, each of his strikes merciless and lethal. The climax came when Liam grabbed the apparent leader by the throat, slowly freezing the life out of him, all while maintaining a cold, indifferent expression.
The final scene was the most chilling: Liam's cold eyes reflected a ruthless, unfeeling light as he looked at the frozen statues around him. In the next instant, the camera shifted, and the statues shattered into pieces, scattering limbs across the ground, telling a grim story of what had transpired.
At that moment, there was no one within ten meters of Liam, except for Sophia, who stood by his side. The eyes of all the students were filled with fear, and none of them dared to even glance in his direction, as if afraid to meet his gaze.
Some female students, unable to handle the gruesome images, began to retch violently. The psychological impact was overwhelming; they had thought Liam was just another student, albeit one with exceptional talent. Now they realized that he was something entirely different.
He had killed people. Really killed people.
After seeing the video, fear and regret flooded their minds. They were terrified at the thought of having fought against Liam in the secret realm. This was a man without emotions, a ruthless killer who wouldn't hesitate to end lives.
"Do you understand now why even thirty-eight of you couldn't defeat him?" Cain's voice cut through the silence, disappointment clear in his tone. "It's not that you lacked strength—it's that you've never faced real combat like this, nor have you undergone the psychological conditioning needed for such battles!"
Cain's voice grew stern as he addressed the students, their faces reflecting sheer terror.
Liam stood in the empty space that had formed around him, listening to Cain speak with conviction. He had hoped to keep this incident under wraps, or at least downplay it if exposed. He wasn't sure of the world's moral standards or the legal repercussions, despite knowing that the enemies had intended to kill him. But now that it was out in the open, he resigned himself to whatever came next.
"You all saw it—Liam had already spilled blood before this test even began," Cain continued. "From the moment he entered the test, you were already at a disadvantage."
"Now, what do you think of his actions in taking those lives?"
No one dared to respond. The students were too shocked, some even shaking where they stood.
"Very well, since none of you are willing to speak, I'll tell you my view," Cain declared. "I believe he did the right thing!"
This statement caught everyone off guard, including Liam, whose eyebrows raised in surprise.
"Everything I've said, including this video, is just an introduction to what I'm about to reveal," Cain continued, his tone more serious. He glanced over at Old Xu and added, "Xu, activate the shielding field."
In an instant, an invisible barrier enveloped the room, causing an uneasy sensation to ripple through the students.
"Welcome to the true world of superhumans, the hidden world beneath the surface," Cain announced. "This barrier is designed to instill a subconscious block, preventing you from sharing any of this information with ordinary people who aren't aware of these secrets."
"Now that we're all here, let's have a little chat," Cain said, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial tone. "Let me ask you all—what do you think is the purpose of superhumans? Why has the world invested so heavily in developing them?"
The question helped the students regain a bit of composure, and one of the more resilient students, Lila, answered, "To combat superhuman crime and to address the strange natural disasters caused by the resurgence of spiritual energy."
Cain smiled and nodded. "You're partly correct, but that's just the cover story."
"These events do happen, but they're rare, and they serve mostly to divert attention and prevent public panic," he explained. "The real reason is much more sinister—there's a divine presence looming over us!"
The students listened intently, their curiosity piqued as they waited for Cain to continue.
"This is the truth that has been buried by the superhuman community—gods want us dead!"
"The entities you encountered during your test, those beings have appeared in our world before. They are what we refer to as 'gods.'"
"And along with them, their worshippers, the 'god-servants,' emerged," Cain began to explain further, but Liam suddenly interrupted him.
"Excuse me, I'm sorry to interrupt, but there's something I really need to ask," Liam said, raising his hand.
Cain paused, allowing Liam to speak.
"I want to know, why are these beings called gods?" Liam asked, his voice laced with confusion. "It doesn't make sense. If they're a threat to humanity, and they look like those grotesque creatures from the secret realm, why not just call them monsters? Why give them a title as grand as 'gods'?"
Cain was taken aback by the question. After a brief moment of thought, he smiled and raised a thumb in approval. "That's an excellent question. I don't think anyone's ever asked it before."
"But there's a reason for it," he continued. "One of the main reasons, in fact, is tied to the early days of spiritual energy's resurgence, over a century ago, and the emergence of a particular individual."
"That man is now known as the Father of Superhumans. He was the first superhuman among us, a true legend."
"He accomplished so much—laying the foundation for the development of superhumans over the next century, establishing the power levels, defining the methods of cultivation, introducing various concepts, and—naming these entities as 'gods.'"
"It sounds pretty audacious, doesn't it?" Cain said, a smile playing on his lips as he spoke with pride for this ancient figure.
"By the way, there's an interesting story about the Father of Superhumans," Cain added. "He once issued a code to the world, hoping to find someone who could answer it correctly, but so far, no one has been able to."
One student, unable to contain their curiosity, asked, "What was the code?"
"Let me think... The first half of the code was something like—'Odd changes, even remains'? It's a strange and seemingly meaningless phrase," Cain replied.
Liam: !!!!!!
Liam, who had been lost in thought, suddenly snapped his head up at the mention of the code.
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